UFC 82 Card Finalized, Andrei Arlovski Stuck Down in Prelims

The UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” fight card and order have been finalized, according to UFC’s event page.

This event has many talents that deserve to fight on the main card, however there is not enough room for everyone. Many knew that the Josh Koscheck vs. Dustin Hazelett fight would be placed on the preliminary portion of the event, but one interesting addition to the untelevised card is former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski taking on up-and-coming UFC heavyweight Jake O’Brien. It seems UFC management is taking the route of, “Out of sight, out of mind,” for Arlovski as it has been rumored that his days in the UFC are numbered.

At one time a few years ago I thought Andre Arlovski was the baddest man on the planet! To me he was the 1st big name that got my attention and helped me get hooked onto MMA.
It’s too bad it has to end like this. I am starting to think the UFC is getting very full of themselves and a little too arrogant and cocky, thinking their shit don’t stink, and that we fans will always buy their payperview no matter who the headliners are (Bisping/Evans). Just because we bought that event doesn’t mean that we’ll make the same mistake twice.

As far as I am concerned, the UFC is just fine without Arlovski. The heavyweight division is thin but it has some amazing talent, I think its going to be a very exciting year for HW fighter. I always read ranking lists but I never see a UFC Top Contender rankings. I wanna hear what people think for the HW’s, because I definitely do not think Werdum should be at the top. Here is mine (assuming Randy is done): 1. Nogueira 2. Mir 3. Werdum 4. Sylvia 5. Kongo 6. Arlovski 7. Gonzaga 8. Vera 9. Sanchez 10. O’Brien 11. Herring 12. Hardonk 13. Cro Cop 14. McCully 15. Lesnar..I obviously think Brock Lesnar is better than a lot of the names on this list, but fact is he is 0-1 and needs at least 3 wins before we talk about title contention, I’m not sure if it was Sam Caplan who said it, but by summer of 09, Lesnar will be champ. What you think

lol… at least he went out like man AND “HONORED HIS CONTRACT” ..LOL… see what happens when you try to play nice…

you guys dont think randy would end up in purgatory like arloski if he came back….there letting him go and pretty much burying him …. see now you know why its no good to root for ufc managemnt instead of the fighters rights…

all because he didnt want to sign an oppressive extension that short changed him money wise… hopefully andrei regains his prior form and shows the ufc what they missed on…

Great fight card. I am a bit confused by the main/preliminary bout choices, but I am looking forward to watching. Hopefully we will get to see a few of the prelims if the main cards end early. Overall, nice fight card.

If Sakara and Leben performance like usual, I’m sure we’ll see that one on the broadcast anyways… all you can hope for, as a fan, is that UFC 82 pans out like the last two and we get to see 8 or so bouts on the PPV broadcast. Hopefully Arlovski and the UFC can reconcile.

Arlovski is probably one of the top 5 in he HW div. No doubt the UFC screwed him & I agree w/most of the chatter boxes here that the rankings are crap. How can you give Werdum the title shot when Arlovski beat him? I mean it was a lame victory, but still a win. C’mon, that alone should tell u that UFC’s mgmt. is very questionable to say the least! Arlovksi has some of the best highlight reel shots in the UFC, and to just turn your back on him like that is crap. He’s been there in the HW div. for a long time making it what it is today. Now you get scrubs that get title shots for no reason (i.e., Werdum).

Wow great fight card. Scratching my head to why Arlovski is so fare down but great card non the less. One thing i would like to say is we cant dog the UFC or Arlovski cause we dont know what goes on behind the closed door.

Did someone a few posts ago say that the UFC has some amazing heavyweight talent???? Please, have yourself committed to the nearest hospital or just go ahead and kill yourself now because you are brain dead! The heavyweight division is an embarassing joke!! Fedor couldn’t save the condition of this mess. I mean people are high on Lesner at this point?? Didn’t he just lose to a washed up has been?? Did I mention the fight lasted 90 seconds? Oh yeah, but Lesner looked good……LOL!!

Hard Ass you are the one who needs the mental hospital. You are what we like to call a natural born hater, for no reason you get the urge to talk shit and shoot down someone else’s opinion so you can walk away from the computer feeling you like have outsmarted someone. The division’s top talent is amazing, but like I said it has a less than average depth. Fedor and Josh Barnett are the only two other relevant heavyweights. SO REALLY WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO SAY IS ALL AROUND THE HW DIVISION SUCKS? YOU SAID SO YOURSELF EVEN FEDOR COULDN’T SAVE IT. AND THE UFC HAS EM ALL EXCEPT HIM. I HIGHLY DOUBT YOU WILL FIND MANY TO AGREE THE THE HW’S OVERALL SUCK. Don’t try and turn this website into Sherdog with your immaturity and negative response. Get a clue, then a life

But if I were watching at home I’d much rather see Diego’s fight than Andrei’s. Outside of the Koscheck fight Diego always puts on a good show and from what Ive seen his opponent is much more exciting than O’boring. Hell I would rather have Hazelett, Leben, or Cummo on the main card before Arlovski. He’s leaving the company and his last 3 fights have been pretty lackluster. I think big Tim broke the Pittbull.

It’s just a shame to see Arlovski leave on these terms. He was always an exciting fighter to watch. I’m not sure what’s going on w/the UFC & it’s many contract disputes, but somethings gotta give in order to make it worth while again. You have everyone hyping up Lesnar, who isn’t all that bad, but has some proving to do before he deserves the love from true MMA fans. But nonetheless, I will follow Andrei to where ever he fights just for the sake of watching him beat ass!

Evan…You’re right what goes on behind closed doors is something the fans aren’t privvy to. But, something is obviously wrong when Randy, Andrei & now Tito are bailing on the UFC. These are ALL icons & serious players in the UFC. Randy is the poster boy for the UFC & one of the best damned fighters to step in the octagon. Arlovski has made the HW class something to watch for w/his impressive fast n’ heavy hands, not to mention him winning the belt as well. A Pit Bull fight was always a good one to watch (except Werdum’s bout). Even Tito was something the UFC capitalized on. Hate him all you want, Tito sold tickets & drew a crowd. It seems as though the good ole’ fashioned blood, sweat & tears that made the sport fun. . .has now turned to egos, hate & corporate greed. Andrei’s still my boy!

Why does everybody assume that Arlovski wants to stay and the UFC doesn’t want him? Maybe he wants to leave. Maybe he has an unrealistic sense of his value. The UFC has the data on revenues, and they know who’s worth the bucks and who isn’t. It’s a bottom line business, and they’d fall all over themselves if he performed. As far as his being in the preliminary fights, his last fight with Werdum was boring. Like watching paint dry boring. Other posts have pointed out that he hasn’t been the same since his two consecutive losses to Tim Sylvia. (Think that over for a few minutes. If you think Sylvia is bad, boring, whatever, how do you still like Arlovski after he lost to Sylvia twice?)

This is a great card, and crying over Arlovski misses the big picture. Hendo vs. Silva? I can’t wait.

Wolfe. . .C’mon, no one’s crying. Can’t I be an Arlovski fan & want him to stay in the UFC where I personally think he belongs? It is a business, and maybe A.A. is asking too much. As I did say, we’re not privvy to what goes on behind closed doors, so calm down. I’m just viewing this from the top, not seeing beneath the surface cuz I simply have no idea what beneath the surface. IMO I do think Dana short changes his fighters. Example..Jardine get’s $14K for beating Liddell (who made $500K)? C’mon. . .doesn’t make sense. Dana’s a greedy control freak & needs more management to assist him. He’s doing a lot of this all alone & that gets overbearing & stressful. But Andrei belongs in the UFC, u gotta agree!

I feel pretty calm. I have no Jiu-Jitsu Guy tendencies at all. Jardine’s payday only looks low in retrospect. If Liddell won, everybody would say that Jardine was a stepping stone to set up another title fight for Liddell. Since Jardine won, he’s probably looking at better money for his next fight. If he keeps winning, his contract goes up. Conversely, AA hasn’t done so well, so he’s slipping. It’s a Darwinian world, for better or for worse, and blaming White for that is substantially overstating his power.

What’s wrong with wanting to succeed (“greed”)? If UFC succeeds, White makes lots of money. Good for him. Also good for us, since we like his product. As far as being a control freak, show me a successful businessman of any kind who isn’t.

And I’m starting to think that maybe this next fight may be the clincher for the nail in the coffin for Arlovski.

An amazing showing by their former Heavyweight champ could lead to the contract Arlovski wants but UFC is hesitant to offer while another lackluster performance further solidifies Arlovski’s stigma as a legitimate but inconsistent contender.

Wolfe. . .Agreed, and I am a businessman myself. I know what greed has done & what it can do to people. I used to wk myself sick to make more $$, then realized enjoying life was more important. I’m financially stable, but respect the guy who wants to wk hard for that extra cash. But mixing that business attribute w/control can lead to screwing over your customers & employees. I love the product UFC produces & will, but that doesn’t mean I can’t disagree w/some of the service provided from time to time. A.A. not being resigned is my gripe. I watch UFC to see him fight primarily, but this goes bk to what wa said earlier. . .maybe we don’t know the whole business that goes on behind closed doors. I will hope that A.A.’s bout gets televised & I hope he smears O’ Brien to show Dana he means business.

Good one. It’s like “jiggy” with a little stutter. Could be a video or at least a You Tube in this somewhere. Maybe with the little dude who did the video about Brittany Spears. Only this time it would be “leave JJG (or me)alone.”

second of all.. i bet JJG is just sitting there reading all of this, itching to comment… but doesn’t want to make his threats to “leave the site” untrue..

i’m telling you.. after all that crap he was talking.. about how this site gets destroyed by other MMA sites… he still probably visits EVERY DAY..

third of all, i wouldn’t like to see AA in another organization.. like WEC, EliteXC, etc… i feel he’s great for the UFC and just wouldn’t seem the same in the other organizations in my opinion… but… i’m sure he WANTS to leave the UFC [and, unfortunately, i’m sure his leave from the UFC is inevitable].. because of all the “conflicts” he’s had lately with his pay and what not..

but i can only hope for the best.. and THAT would be if all of the sudden all of AA’s problems with the UFC just disappeared.. and he continued to fight for the UFC..

Who cares if he responds or not? I don’t. Maybe, just maybe Rich, this last performance will be one of his best, thus giving Dana a shocker forcing him in the locker room to re-think leaving. I can almost see Dana begging Andrei to stay. Hell he’s still begging Randy, you know he is.

The lawsuit was a ploy to get back @ Randy & we know that. Randy isn’t, nor will give into the treatment from the UFC. So the only alternative to win the pissin’ contest is to go @ him legitimately through a “legal avenue”. Now there isn’t even a court issued decision on the case itself, so Randy might be in the clear. If so, and if it were me, I’d countersue the UFC if I were Randy & if I won the suit. This is merely a pissing contest. IF Randy were to give in, apologize & kiss Dana’s ass tomorrow. . .the suit would be dropped & we know that. Andrei won’t be f–ked w/the same way, you’re right.